Kukla's Korner Hockey

Category: Non-NHL-Hockey

Longtime American warriors—as Team USA GM Brian Burke likes to call them—such as Chris Chelios, Jeremy Roenick and Keith Tkachuk won’t be battling for roster spots when the camp opens Monday in suburban Chicago. Instead, it’s a younger, faster, American team that hopes to spend a few days developing chemistry and learning coach Ron Wilson’s system.

Factor in the expected appearance of Patrick Kane, who was arrested following an incident with a Buffalo cab driver, and there’s plenty to watch for during the three-day camp, including:

1. Will Patrick Kane talk?

The American players know that there might be a little more media coverage surrounding the Olympic orientation, thanks to Kane’s arrest and the proximity of the event to Chicago.

“If there were going to be 20 (media) guys there, now there will be 40,” said Hainsey, a key member of the improving Atlanta Thrashers defense. “From our side, we don’t have a clue about what happened.”

Michigan State hockey player A.J. Sturges released a statement Thursday to media members criticizing the football program’s decision to reinstate Glenn Winston, the sophomore running back who injured him during an off-campus altercation in October.

“In my opinion, the immediate reinstatement of Glenn Winston to the football team reflects very poorly on Michigan State athletics,” Sturges wrote. “This decision has established weak precedent for future athletes involved in violent crimes.”

Sturges said he suffered a fractured skull, bleeding on the brain and had to have five stitches inside his mouth after taking a punch to the side of the head from Winston. Sturges missed the 2008-09 season and said he was forced to drop academic courses because of memory issues and headaches resulting from the injuries.

Less than a week until the first of the summer orientation camps that will provide a first glimpse into what the United States and Canadian squads might look like come February.

With that in mind, here are some of the burning questions and Olympic odds and ends as the clock ticks down:

American GM Brian Burke has made no secret of how he plans to build his Olympic team, and that’s with plenty of sand. Look for two forward lines with as much skill as the Americans can collect and two lines with a lot of in-your-face personality. Same goes for the blue line, as Burke will want size and mobility that can hopefully withstand opposing forecheckers and move the puck quickly and smartly out of the defensive zone.

Police in southern Ontario have launched a fraud investigation after about 60 young hockey players said they paid thousands to attend a European tournament that didn’t happen.

The players, who are mostly from southern Ontario and in their late teens, paid roughly $3,000 each to travel to France to participate in the tournament.

Event organizer Ontario Central Scouting (OCS) promised dozens of professional hockey scouts would be at the tournament, said the players.

Instead, when they returned to Toronto on Tuesday, the dejected group said there was no tournament and they ended up playing a few games against each other….

OCS blamed the International Ice Hockey Federation — the organization that governs hockey around the world — saying it warned European scouts to stay away from the Canadian players because the OCS was not sanctioned by Hockey Canada.

Nikolai Zherdev crossed the Atlantic in his turn. The former Rangers player would accept a new contract with the team Yulaev Salavat Ufa in the KHL.

added 4:57pm, from John Glennon of the Tennessean,

Hedges (zherdev’s agent) also said Monday that Zherdev – who’s three times in five years topped the 20-goal mark – was currently working out with a Russian team. But he also said Zherdev was still talking to a handful of NHL teams, and that Zherdev probably wouldn’t make any decisions until next week.

So when I saw the RDS report today, I followed up with an e-mail to Hedges, asking him to clarify the situation. His response from just over a half hour ago: ``(Zherdev) has not signed at this point.’’

The NHL Players’ Association is recommending that players who participate in Olympic orientation camps this summer “seriously consider” purchasing additional insurance coverage in the event of injury because their contracts do not cover activities at the camps.

“The league has taken the position that our members’ Standard Player Contracts (SPC) will not cover activities at the Orientation Camps, and that they will therefore be participating at their own risk,” said Paul Kelly, NHLPA executive director, in a statement.

“Following discussions with Hockey Canada and USA Hockey, they have recently agreed to increase the insurance coverage they are providing to our members invited to their Orientation Camps,” he continued.

“Unfortunately the federations’ insurance coverage is still very limited.”

TORONTO (August 5, 2009) – Teppo Numminen, a 20-year veteran with the Winnipeg Jets/ Phoenix Coyotes, Dallas Stars and Buffalo Sabres, as well as a decorated international hockey player, officially announced his retirement today from the National Hockey League.

Numminen, 41, a three-time NHL All-Star (1999, 2000, 2001) appeared in a total of 1,372 NHL games and recorded 117 goals and 520 assists for 637 points in his career.

“I feel very fortunate to have had the opportunity to play with and against the best players in the world for so many years,” said Numminen. “Playing hockey in the NHL and also for my country, Finland, was very enjoyable. I want to thank my teammates, coaches, fans, and the media for all the great years.”

A Tampere native, Numminen fits the stereotype perfectly. The people from Tampere are said to be calm, slow, and modest, to a fault. “Let’s not make a big deal out of this,” is a phrase that echoes in the Tampere Arena. Numminen has never made a big deal out of himself.